The Unction of the Holy Spirit

 “we have the unction” 1John: 2:20 

  Some Believers can mistake hyper emotionalism or unorthodox behavior for the Unction of the Spirit, or they may behave in a way which they have been told they are expected to behave in ecstatically or flamboyance or unusual ways, or that the Unction of God is only manifested in a specific way in the life of Christians.

 The Greek word translated "unction"  is Charisma , it means to “smear” as anointing oil would be applied. It can be viewed as setting a part to receive an endowment which is bestowed upon us for the fulfillment of a role.

 This same word Charisma  is used  in St. John’s 1st Epistle, but here,  it has been rendered by translators  as anointing.

 In verse 27 the same word is translated anointing.

  “As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him.” (27)

  What is the unction? Do Christians today have it? Do Christians  have the “unction” of the Holy Spirit? How would we know? What form(s) does the unction of the Spirit take within the lives of Christians?

  Does The Unction Happen Today?

  While preaching, pastors or teachers might have the unction of the Holy Spirit. The unction can be experienced as a sudden burst of understanding or insight in regards to a subject or a verse which they had not previously considered nor planned for in the preparation of the sermon. 

This unction, can lead to addressing information which presses or emerges into the speaker’s stream of consciousness in such a way that it cannot be ignored and must be spoken. There is a gentle but powerful persistent compulsion to speak which is experienced.

 The unction may be experienced as a strong prompting from within to speak on a subject or to address a particular person(s). Or , it can be a persistent thought which is recurring and seems that it will not fade, or , it could be something that just lingers on our minds until you act or do , or not do the subject of the prompting.

We can receive the “unction” to pray for a person(s) or situation(s) or we find our prayers to be very intense regrading a particular person(s).  The unction, may come upon us suddenly and at unusual times. We may find ourselves awaken suddenly for no apparent reason from sleep, with a person, a friend or pastor “heavy” on our heart leading us to get up and pray for the person or situation.

 During Bible Study, whether alone or in a group setting, or hearing a sermon, a verse or section of Scripture will suddenly take on a “highly personal meaning” to us so much so that it seems to be speaking directly to us. Or understanding will surface in our minds which we had not previously known or understood.

  How to Discern 

  How can we know if such “unction” or “prompting” and leading are of God or Satan or just the self? Is there a way for us to know?

 The first thing is that if an “unction” is coming from the Holy Spirit the "unction" will never lead us to do anything which is contrary to what we find revealed in the Holy Word of God and the “unction” will always direct us to the person of Jesus Christ.

 The unction will always be “edifying” and will build up  rather than tear down. The unction will augment rather than diminish a person and will be for the good not for someone’s personal agenda.

 The unction will challenge our human nature and will be opposed to the pulls of the flesh.

 St. Paul, tells us in his letter to the Christians at Rome that we are led by the Holy Spirit but we are not “forced” by the Holy Spirit; that is, God will not usurp our own personal sovereignty and make us do something.

  “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship” Rom: 8:14-15

  St. Paul also, even in relationship to the “gifts of the Spirit”, tells us that the “gifts” are exercised under our own control. The Holy Spirit does not displace us, but rather, we are able to choose to or not to respond to the Spirit’s prompting, which in most cases is gentle and loving in it's intensity. The unction of the Holy Spirit is never forced upon us.

“Spirit of the prophets is subject to the prophets” 1Cor: 14:32-33

  Over time, as we grow in Christian maturity and gain experiences with our Lord Jesus we will come know if it is God or not, because we know and recognize his voice. That does not mean that we will hear an audible voice, but that is not to say that God cannot or has never spoken in such a way   with a believer though it maybe seldom that he does so.

The voice of God which we come to recognize is that of a calm, gentle, patient and understanding, yet filled with a passionate love toward and for us all.

  “the Sheep know my voice” Jhn: 10:27

  This “knowing” or recognizing the voice of our Lord  is what we read of in the Psalms, when the Psalmist wrote.

  “be still and know that I am God” Ps: 46:10

  We hear God speaking to us through Bible Study and counsel with God’s ministers ,  fellowship through fellowship , prayer and worship in our local assemblies.

  Glorifying Jesus

   If it is the “unction” of God which rest upon us by the Holy Spirit, the prompting will glorify God through Jesus Christ. The "unction” of the Holy Spirit will set our minds and heart to always to  look to and trust Jesus for the Holy Spirit will always point us to Christ and in always and  things seek to give us a deeper revelation of who Jesus is.

 If the sources of the impulse which has arisen in our hearts is anything else it will seek to glorify the self and satisfy the flesh in some form.

 "However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come. He will glorify Me by taking from what is Mine and disclosing it to you. Everything that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will take from what is Mine and disclose it to you."Jhn:16:13-15

  The “unction” of the Holy Spirit will strengthen or reconcile a relationship with God and others binding each closer together in Christian fellowship and or set the stage for future reconciliation which calls upon us to grow in our own maturity as children of God.

 “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Eph: 4:2-3

  Conditions for Unction

 It is unfortunate  but  there are times when believers may think that they are acting on an unction from God, but in truth, they have a personal agenda which is being undertaken. 

There are times when, at the very moment the unction occurred, it was from the Spirit, but then the flesh wants it's way and a personal agendas develops. Such a person in a moment of immaturely may look to uses the situation for their own advantage and advancement, this is something we must guard against.

 Believers must be on guard so as to keep the flesh from detracting from what God wants us to do. We need to keep our minds and hearts stayed ever on Jesus and all things which are relating to our Savior.

 “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” Col: 3:1-2

Through a singular view upon Jesus and steady intake of the Word of God then our minds will be transformed into the mind of Christ. 

  “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete “. 2Cor:10:5

 We are to look ever to our Lord Jesus, the deeper of a relationship with Jesus we have, the more familiar becomes his voice and the clearer. We can perceive the “unction” of the Spirit.

  “Fix your eyes on Jesus” Heb: 12:1-2

  This will ensure that we serve our Lord and God all for the glory of Jesus.

 Benediction: May we each and all ever respond to the gentle unction of the Holy Spirit so that we might serve our Lord ever more effectively, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen.

Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor 

Topinabee Community Church

Topinabee, Michigan 

If You Would Like to Know More About or to Support the Ministry of Topinabee Community Church You Can go to Our Web Site.

https://topinabeechurch.org/index.html

You Can Follow Topinabee Community Church on Face Book 

https://www.facebook.com/Topinabeecommunitychurch

                    "If It Is Not About Jesus, It Is Not About Anything"

The Trinity: A Matter of the Heart

 that all of them maybe one, as you Father are in me and I am in you. 

May they also be in us” Jhn: 17:21a-b.

Trinity Sunday is observed the Sunday following Pentecost in the liturgical calendar of the Christian Church.

The Holy Trinity, The Father, Son and Holy Spirit, is a hall-mark of the Christian faith and life. The Holy Trinity is found emerging from the pages of the Holy Bible and is enshrine and affirmed in all the major orthodox Christian Creeds and statement of beliefs dating from the Apostolic time to our own.

The Divine Holy Trinity maybe one of the most difficult truths to grasp, after all how can one God be in three divine “persons?”

 Many, Theologians, Clergy and Laity alike have wrestled with and attempted to understand this reality of the one true God being the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Our Lord Jesus commissioned his Disciples throughout the ages to go forth into all the world and carrying the Gospel message to the ends of the Earth in and by the authority of the divine Trinity.

“There go into all the Earth and make Disciples and baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit” Matt: 28:19

The Greek grammatical sentence structure and focus on the “name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit” is singular and which means that, “the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit” is the singular name of the one God. What this tells us is , that though he is one, he is three, triune in nature, not just “one” who acts as three or has three ways of relating and interacting with us, nor three separate “gods” or “divine beings” who agree to form a holy cooperative union, this view would make God “three in one” but God is rather “one in three”. This may seem a small distinction but it is rather very important. No, the Trinity is far greater than these concepts and a far deeper mystery.

Over the years Christians have attempted to construct theological models to enable us to try to have a grasp on this reality, yet they all have their limitations and are inadequate to the truth of who God is, they all fall short.

None Like God

As it say's in the Holy Scriptures regarding our God.

“To whom will you compere me, or count me equal? To whom will you liken me that we might be compered?” Isa: 46:5

We are assured through the sacred writ that there is none like God that he is unique, not just in power and glory but in his very divine nature, and defies humanity’s understanding. 

Again, from the Holy word of God we have this declaration in the historical book of 1 Chronicles.

“O Lord there is none like you, nor is there any God beside you, according to all which we have heard with our ears” 1Chr:17:20

The God which speaks to us from the pages of all the Bible is above and beyond us.

It is true, that we as limited mortals can never truly grasp the wholeness of who and what our God is, we will never truly be able to apprehend all that he is.

Yet, paradoxically when we come to see this Holy reality it answers so many questions for us and opens our understanding to an even greater depth. The Trinity gives us access to come to an understand God’s holy purpose for creation and for each and all of us and for the entrance of Jesus the eternal Son of God through the incarnation.

St. Paul wrote that God has been revealed to us in and through Jesus, in one of the earliest known Apostolic Creedal hymns found within the Scriptures.

“By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: God who was revealed in the flesh, was vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory” 1Tim:3:16

The Heart of the Trinity

It would be possible to spend untold hours in research and study of and about the related Scriptures through which we see the evidence of the Trinity of God emerge. But the Trinity, however is far more than a technical theological concept or idea or way of entering into discussions about our God or an explanation of his divine nature, it is rather a revelation of God’s desire for us and his holy and unwavering love.

What this means is, if we look at the truth of the Trinity as mater of the heart rather than of the mind, and understand the nature of the Trinity in terms of relationship we see something deeply profound which we have all been invited to be an eternal part of through Jesus and the Holy Spirit as manifested on the day of Pentecost. 

 The eternal God the Holy Trinity has, through Jesus, offered each and all humanity to enter into this deep personal relationship which God has within himself.

This is what Jesus came for and has offend to us all. Jesus, the incarnate son, the second person of the Holy Trinity is God reaching out to us and inviting us to share in this divine holy relationship.This holy relationship which we are all invited to be a part of was called by the ancient church Perichoresis, which means, to eternally dance around one another in joy.

This entrance into the divine relationship of the Trinity, the Perichoresis, is what Jesus came to do for each and all of humanity, to invited us into this joyful relationship. This is what St. John declares in his Gospel account regarding the eternal Word of God‘s entrance into the stream of human history through the incarnation.

“But as many as who received him, to them he gave the right to become children of God even those who believe in his name” Jhn:1:12

This “right” of which Jesus has given us is the “right” of a full member of the household, it is reality not just a theoretical relationship position but an actual one granting full access to all that a Father of a given household would dispose to his children.

The truth of the relationship which the Father has invited us into, all through his beloved Son, the Holy Spirit assures us of and confirms to us and is conveyed to us in a deep and personal way through the Holy Spirit’s presence

This is what St. Paul is writing to Christians about in his epistle to the Romans.

“The Spirit himself testifies to our spirit that we are the children of God.” Rm: 8:16

 It is God’s heart that all humanity would freely receive this invitation given to us all through Jesus and affirmed to us through the Spirit. It is the heart of God that all would enter this relationship of love, joy and peace that God has within his very self which the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit share so fully and freely within the Trinity.

The Trinity Relationship

This Trinity relationship is one of perfect love of mutual regard and adoration, of unhindered bounding with full union of common essence yet with recognition of distinction without diminishing.

This is part of what our Lord Jesus meant when his spoke of the Father and he being “one”.

“The Father and I are one” Jhn: 10:30

This just does not speak to only to assenting or agreement to a task or will, but to essence and being and relationship and fellowship. The fellowship of common essence. Oneness, wholeness.

With this fellowship of common essences each is equally valued and participate, yet distinct with no diminishing among the relationship of the Trinity. This relationship is found hinted at within the words of Jesus as he expounds upon the Holy Spirit’s role in the lives of his Disciples just shortly before he would face arrest and crucifixion.      

“When the Advocate comes, whom I will send from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father-he will testify about me” Jhn: 15:26

Here in this statement and others spoken by Jesus, is the Trinity in full view and each’s distinct place within the Trinity relationship. The Holy Spirit is sent by Jesus from the Father to us for the purpose of giving us revelation about Jesus all in full oneness.

Jesus prayed that we all could have this same relationship among ourselves and all humanity. Praying to the Father, Jesus requested that the same relationship that is shared within the Holy Trinity can be fully our own experiences here and now and on into eternity. 

“that all of them maybe one, as you Father are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us” Jhn: 17:21a-b.

In this prayer of our Lord, Jesus is asking more than just cooperation and agreement among believers. Jesus is asking that we all might enter and be a apart of the Trinity relationship, the Perichoresis , among ourselves here and now and always.

The Lord is One

This relationship of love of the Trinity is even found in the Shema Creed found in the Scripture.

“Hear O Israel the Lord our God is One” Deut: 4:6

This being “one” is not a numerical reference to the Lord being a singular, but the Hebrew rather, speaks of wholeness and self-unity found with in God himself. This  wholeness of relationship is what we are invited to and what Jesus has called us to and prayed for us all to have.

This is the Heart of the Trinity relationship which our God has made us to live within now and for all eternity. 

This is what Trinity Sunday celebrates not just an explanation of the nature of God’s divine self, but the eternal holy divine relationship of love and joy. This is the Heart of the Trinity.

Benediction: May we each and all fully live and be deeply within the relationship to which our God lives and offers so freely to each and all of us through his divine Holy Son Jesus Christ, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen. 

Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor 

Topinabee Community Church

Topinabee, Michigan 

If You Would Like to Know More About or to Support the Ministry of Topinabee Community Church You Can go to Our Web Site.

https://topinabeechurch.org/index.html

You Can Follow Topinabee Community Church on Face Book 

https://www.facebook.com/Topinabeecommunitychurch

"If It Is Not About Jesus, It Is Not About Anything"

 

Pentecost: A New Life

 "not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills

, but the Spirit gives life.”2Cor:3:6

Fifty days after the Lord God brought Israel out of Egypt, God , thru Moses, led Israel to the foot of Mount Sinai, and there on the Feast of First Fruits , which was part of the Holy Days enjoined under the Old Covenant, and what the Church calls Pentecost.

There, at the foot of the Holy Mount shrouded in fire and dark clouds, the Law, the Ten Commandments, which was the very focal point of the Old Covenant, was given, the Ten Commandments, which the Scripture tells us, was the very Covenant between God and Israel

“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write down these words, for in accordance with these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel.” Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments.” Ex: 34:27-28

Yet,  it was at the giving of the Commandments, the very heart of the Sacred Covenant, came the death of 3000 of the people of Israel.

Then he said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Each man strap a sword to his side. Go back and forth through the  camp from one end to the other, each killing his brother and friend and neighbor.’” The Levites did as Moses commanded, and that day about three thousand of the people died” Ex: 32:27-28

This demonstrates what we find in St. Paul referring to the Old Covenant, the Law, as the ministry of death.

“Such confidence we have through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone,”2Cor:3:6-7a

None Could Live up to It

 The Law, given from the atop of Sinai as glorious as it was brought only death and condemnation. Regardless as to how hard as anyone struggled to keep it ,no matter how much “will” they attempted to put forth, they would inevitably fail and the Law would claim their lives and brought them only the realization that they, that is we all, were, and are , inadequate and would ultimately demand punishment.

Unable to perform up to the Holy standard that is set in the Law they found themselves under constant condemnation.

This Holy perfect Law would evoke within humanity and empower the very object that it so starkly defines and exposes. Sin!

The Apostle St. Paul address this very paradox in his letter to the Christian Church at Corinth 2000 years ago, but St. Paul also speaks to all believers in every age who have found themselves sincerely trying to keep the Law of God yet failing miserably and coming under nagging condemnation. What is more, the harder these believers try,  so much stronger the grip of sin becomes and they, and we, succumb to it again and again.

There appears to them that the more effort they expend the greater the power sin is exerted over their lives.

St. Paul wrote of this Law-sin relationship to the Corinth Christians.

“The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.”1Cor:15:56

The Law its self is the strength of sin, that is why when we struggle against sin the Law itself in complete Holy perfection demonstrates our complete imperfectness to live up to the Holy standard which gives sin the power to defeat us and we fail.

But our loving God who is merciful and has through his very Son Jesus Christ provided the means for each and all who will but freely receive it to be victorious over that which would claim our lives.

"But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ". (57)

God in his grace had planned and provided a greater way, a more glorious way through his Holy Son Jesus. Jesus has done what no Law could ever do, Jesus has brought us life and union with him.

The Day of Pentecost inaugurated and now commemorates of that new way in the lives of humanity, for any who will freely receive what Jesus has accomplished for each and all.

This new way which brings life and freedom and healing of the very soul of humanity to any who will enter into participation with this a new way , a way which is so far above the old .

“Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily  at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!

Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to prevent the Israelites from seeing the end of what was passing away. But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”2Cor:3:1-18

The new way and Covenant in, and thru Jesus Christ, is far more glorious in the Spirit; for as St. Paul wrote of the very Spirit and essence of that new way –" the Lord is that Spirit”, that is , Jesus is the focal point and foundation of the new way of living.

That is, the Holy Spirit is Christ with us, and the evidence of Christ presence with the Apostolic Church was made manifest on that day of Pentecost 2000 years ago there is the streets of Jerusalem.

Christ With Us

Jesus spoke of his coming to them after his death and resurrection through the agency of the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Holy Trinity , to be with believers conveying the very presences of Jesus in our lives  to be their “Comforter”, expressing Jesus’ being with them and assuring us of the love of the Father to and for them.

“If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—he Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.” Jhn:14:15-21

In the Sending of the “Comforter” , in the Greek the “Paraklatouios”, Jesus Himself is “come”, that is, Jesus is manifested in the lives of those who come to believe in him.

Pentecost commemorates, the present assurance of Jesus Christ with us.

The Holy Spirit manifested among the believers, there 2000 years ago and continues to do so throughout history which is Jesus himself among us, that we are joined in union with the Holy Trinity by and in Jesus.

This is what God has intended from eternity past, that he and we should be joined together in union and living the Spiritual life in relationship.

On Pentecost in the streets of Jerusalem 3000 were saved, that is they entered the accomplished salvation which Christ has provided, and Jesus’ was there among and in them. 

On that Pentecost , the Apostolic Church was rejoicing in the Spirit, not celebrating the Law given centuries earlier at Sinai with its' the focus on the Law of Commandments.

In the Spirit not Under the Law

Pentecost is the entering into experiencing this new life in Christ, being a part of what God has accomplished in his Son Jesus – it is a release from the oppression of the performance-based religiosity of the Law to the glorious liberty of the grace-based life empowered by the Holy Spirit.

It is the life of freedom, the new life in the Spirit, it is the life of knowing that our Lord and Savior is with us and that we have a new life now and into Eternity

Benediction: May we each and all rejoice in the new life of the Spirit, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen.

Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor 

Topinabee Community Church

Topinabee, Michigan 

If You Would Like to Know More About or to Support the Ministry of Topinabee Community Church You Can go to Our Web Site.

https://topinabeechurch.org/index.html

You Can Follow Topinabee Community Church on Face Book 

https://www.facebook.com/Topinabeecommunitychurch

"If It Is Not About Jesus, It Is Not About Anything"

Pentecost: Brought Together in Jesus

 

Pentecost- or Sha·vu·oth- in Hebrew= Feast of First Fruits

Pentecost has been seen as an Inarguable event that starts a “season” called- “Whitsuntide”.

We can read of humanities' attempt to have a form of forced unity and the results of this human inspired effort in Gen:11:1-9. This leads us to understand that there is a difference between unity and conformity.

After the great flood humanity came together in pride and arrogance in a humanly devised attempt to  “reach heaven” . This attempt ended in God confounding the languages of men so that their attempt failed.

 The nations were brought together as one for their own purposes. All speaking the same language yet, after the intervention of the great God , now humanities speaks in each in their own language , and all in regard to their own agenda, and there has been strife and separation among the nation of the world from that day until our present time.

Acts: 2:1

Often we view the events surrounding Pentecost, as if Pentecost has a kind of separation from those events just 50 days prior, that is , the crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. But , when we view Pentecost in this way, we can develop the idea that the Church emerges after the other great occurrence in Jesus’ life and see the Church as being somehow distinct from the events in Jesus' life and death and resurrection.

That is, we see Pentecost as an in “event” which inaugurates the Church. But we can better understand it when we see Pentecost not as a delayed reaction to all those thing surrounding Jesus, but as an immediate result of those things, that is, all Pentecost did was demonstrate what was already true , that Jesus lives and is the Son of the living God. Pentecost simply shows us this truth.

Pentecost is, in truth , a summery of what has come before , especially the Death and Resurrection and Ascension of Jesus. Pentecost reflects that the Holy Spirit has, and is at work, not that he has just begins to work , albeit in a new way bringing humanity into a grand participation with the living Jesus affirming that the great God through the incarnation has united us to himself all through Jesus, the eternal Son of God the second person of the Holy Trinity.

Whereas humanity, in the post-flood world attempted to reach "unto heaven" resulting in a scattering of the peoples of the Earth . God has , through the incarnation and the manifestation of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost into the lives of people from all nation has brought unity to us in Jesus and the Spirit , showing that Heaven has reached down to us and brought us together in unity.

 The Church then are those, regardless of from what nation they come, who have begun to participate with Jesus having entered into the forgiveness of sin which God has made freely available through his Holy Son Jesus, and now have surrendered to the lead of the Holy Spirit in their lives making them a type of symbolic "first fruit" along with Jesus.

"But each in turn: Christ, the first-fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him." 1Cor:15:23a

"He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first-fruits of all he created"Jam:1:18

The Ancient Church Compelled

The Ancient Church saw Pentecost as more of a day to recapitulate what is already true , that salvation has come and is available for humanities participation. 

Through Jesus, and the Holy Spirit in our lives, what the day of Pentecost in Act :12 does , is to demonstrates what those who have come to believe are to do ; we are to tell the world around us about the living Jesus.

In St. Luke's account , in Acts:2, the 120 Disciples could not be contained to the upper room where they had been assembling, the Holy Spirit compelled them to enter the streets of Jerusalem and proclaim Christ and his Kingdom. 

St. Paul tells us , in his Epistle to Geek Christians at the city of Corinth that the proclamation by the Church of the Gospel message was motivated by the love of God shown toward all humanity thru Jesus and his saving work.

"For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died." 2Cor:5:14

The day of Pentecost does not mark the beginning of the Holy Spirit’s work in the History of salvation, but demonstrates that the Holy Spirits has, and is, and will be at work in the world now through the Church that is all Christians.

The Church

Pentecost is the day that we note the Church as a body empowered by the Holy Spirit and moves through the world and presents the risen Savior to humanity. This same group of people who hid in fear just a few short weeks prior, now empowered and embolden go forth and tell the world about Jesus, thru their words and actions.

 Pentecost, Not Bable

Pentecost demonstrates that the curse of Bable , in Christ , has been Broken.

At Pentecost God brought many people from many nations all , manifesting different languages , but speaking in “one” voice about Jesus not reaching up to heaven but heaven reaching down to men.

A Hymn of the Post Apostolic Church

“Filled with the Spirit’s power, with one accord

The infant church confessed its risen Lord.

O Holy Spirit, in the church today

No less your power of fellowship display”

For Us

The very same Holy Spirit who empowered the Church and manifested the Resurrected Jesus 2000 years ago and throughout the ages is the same Spirit and same Jesus , which is manifested in the live of the church even at this hour, who is here in our midst and who indwells us through out the ages. Pentecost reminds us of this truth now and forevermore. that in Jesus we are brought together as one.

Benediction: May we each and all ever rejoice this Pentecost that we are brought together in Jesus, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen,

Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor 

Topinabee Community Church

Topinabee, Michigan 

If You Would Like to Know More About or to Support the Ministry of Topinabee Community Church You Can go to Our Web Site.

https://topinabeechurch.org/index.html

You Can Follow Topinabee Community Church on Face Book 

https://www.facebook.com/Topinabeecommunitychurch

"If It Is Not About Jesus, It Is Not About Anything"